The Alzheimer’s Association estimates that 5.1 million Americans aged 65 and older are currently living with the disease, and it projects this number will increase to 7.1 million in 2025 and 13.8 million in 2050.
New large scale clinical trials, however, may offer some hope. They involve studying treatments that have the potential to affect the underlying cause of Alzheimer’s and slow – or maybe even halt – its progression.
The four drugs currently approved for the treatment of symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease have a common therapeutic approach: to boost communication between nerve cells in the brain. The most recent treatment was approved by the FDA in 2003. And while these medications may help manage symptoms, they can’t halt disease progression and the associated mental decline.
But many of the new “disease-modifying” treatments being studied focus on preventing the deposit of amyloid protein, which is a plaque that essentially coats the brain. These deposits are believed to cause damage by blocking cell-to-cell communication and may even trigger an inflammatory response that leads to the destruction of brain cells.
The new treatments aim to disrupt the deposit and thus potentially slow or stop the disease.
The Clinical Research Center has already participated in one such study and is getting ready to participate in another, The Amaranth Study. Volunteer patients will undergo an extensive screening process to determine if they qualify for and can safely participate in the study. All patient volunteers must meet study criteria for a diagnosis of mild Alzheimer’s disease and be between 55-85 years old. Volunteers also must have a study partner, someone with whom the volunteer has regular contact and who can attend all study visits and provide input on the volunteer’s mental functioning and overall health. Potential volunteers can use the Pre-Qualification Screener Assessment on the The Amaranth Study website to see if they might qualify.
If you’d like more information about this study or any of our other clinical trials call the Clinical Research Center at 541-766-2163, or send an email to research@corvallisclinic.com or fill out our Research Study Information Request form. And, follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/corvallisclinicresearch.
– Julie Carrico is Associate Coordinator of The Corvallis Clinical Research Center
